A Team: What is Anderson County's plan for overgrowth at Broadway Lake?

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Mike Ellis/Independent Mail

Broadway Lake is a 300-acre recreation spot east of downtown Anderson(Photo: Contributed)

Q: What is the county going to do about overgrowth in Broadway Lake that is still there after the water has returned to the normal level?

A: Vegetation, which includes bushes and small trees that began growing when the water level was more than five feet low as a dam was repaired, has created problems for boaters and swimmers in shallow water near the shore.

Community activist Roy Ivey has studied the issue at length and discussed it with county officials, residents and a company that dredged the lake about 20 years ago.

He's convinced that only three options are available — eliminating the vegetation with chemicals, dredging the lake, or waiting for nature to take its course. He's also convinced the third option is the best.

"Using any chemicals is a little bit scary. I don't want to see contaminants in the water," Ivey said, "and dredging would be too expensive."

Broadway Lake is a 300-acre lake on Broadway Creek, about five miles east of downtown Anderson. Access is provided by a public boat ramp.

The project to repair the dam was completed May 30. The process began in December 2014, following a routine safety inspection by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, which issued a rating of poor. Engineer evaluations of the dam were conducted and found soil erosion that occurred behind and under the outlet of the lake discharge pipe, which runs through the dam and connects with the riser in the lake.

Heavy rainfall in October 2015 prompted another dam safety inspection by DHEC. As a result, an emergency order was issued requiring the county to lower the lake until necessary repairs were complete.

"The lake is at full pool now, and we're not planning to draw it down this winter, so it should remain at full pool for a while," said Jonathan Batson, Anderson County's stormwater manager who served as project manager for the dam repair. "As long as the lake level is up, the vegetation that had been exposed won't continue to grow.

"In this case, doing nothing, and letting nature take care of the problem, is the most efficient option for the environment and any other concerns," Batson said.

Glenn Brill, director of the county's parks and recreation, said the same strategy was used at Lake Hartwell when vegetation grew on banks that were exposed in the drought period between 2007 and 2012.

"Mother Nature will take care of this," Brill said.

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